


Together Again

by mermoth



Category: The Evil Within (Video Game)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Childhood Friends, Childhood Sweethearts, F/M, Reader-Insert, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-27
Updated: 2019-03-29
Packaged: 2019-12-18 16:30:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18253610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mermoth/pseuds/mermoth
Summary: After spending 27 years in a mental asylum, you and your childhood friend Ruben Victoriano are reunited. He promises to one day rescue you from your prison, but after MOBIUS betrays him, it becomes apparent that Ruben is the one in need of rescuing.





	1. Chapter 1

“I’m not crazy, y’know?” you said aloud, leaning your head back against the white padded wall of your cell. “I mean, it’s my head, isn’t it? I would know if I was crazy, wouldn’t I?” You shifted in your spot on the ground, sliding your feet over the smooth cushioning of the floor and twitching slightly as you attempted to ignore the itchiness peppering the skin under your left eye down to the fingers on your left arm. It had been bothering you for months, but when you tried to scratch it before, the hospital staff bound you in a straitjacket and put you in that horrible, windowless room.

“I wish I could play the piano again,” you said. “Do you remember when Ruben and I used to play together? He always had trouble with the faster parts.” You sighed and looked into the corner of the room, where a young woman in a crimson dress sat, staring at you.

“Do you think I’m crazy, Laura?” you asked her. She shook her head and smiled reassuringly at you. You exhaled softly, looking up to the ceiling. “I’m glad you believe me. No one else does.” In your peripheral vision, you could see Laura standing up and walking over to you, then sitting down next to you and gently stroking your hair.

“I miss hearing your voice,” you mumbled. “I miss Ruben too. I know he’s out there, somewhere… If he knew where we were, he would come save us in a heartbeat, I know it.” Laura nodded silently, folding her hands in her lap after a moment.

The skin on your cheek prickled insistently. Without thinking about it, you drew your legs up close to you and pressed your cheek against your knee, trying to rub away the itch. No matter what you did, it wouldn’t go away. You rubbed your cheek back and forth over the thin fabric of your patient gown until the fabric became smeared with red. Laura gently placed her hand on your shoulder, shaking her head in concern.

The door creaked open and you lifted your head to look towards it. You felt a trickle of blood reach your lips and licked it away. When your doctor saw, he sighed in frustration.

“How many times must you reopen that wound, (Y/N)?” Dr. Jimenez asked. You licked your lips again, shrugging as well as you could in the straitjacket.

“It doesn’t hurt,” you said.

“Just because you can’t feel it,” he started, walking into the room and pulling a sanitizing wipe and a bandage from his pocket, “doesn’t mean that you’re not hurting yourself.”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes, it does, (Y/N),” he sighed, starting to clean your wound again. “If you keep this up, we’re going to have to start restraining you completely, or keeping you sedated. Is that what you want?”

“No,” you replied, staring down at the blood staining your knee and feeling your stomach turn over at the thought of being sedated again. You hated needles. “Why are you here, doctor?”

“I suspected you might be hurting yourself again,” he said, voice cracking slightly. He seemed nervous about something.

“Then you would have sent a nurse or someone to check on me. Why are you really here?”

The doctor sighed, muttering something about you sounding “just like him” before finishing bandaging your wound. He stood up and rubbed his hands together, glancing towards the closed door.

“I was just contemplating something,” he said after a moment.

“What?” you asked, leaning your head back again.

“Just another treatment that might work better for you,” he said. “It’s nothing you need to be concerned about.”

“I don’t need another treatment,” you complained. “I don’t need treatment at all. I’m not crazy—Laura agrees with me.”

“Yes, I imagine she may,” Dr. Jimenez said, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket and dabbing at his forehead. “Regardless of what you and Laura think, you are very sick and we want to do everything we can to make you better. Again, it’s nothing you need to be concerned about. I haven’t decided yet if you’re…suitable for this kind of treatment.”

“I don’t want to do it,” you said. “You don’t have to decide because I won’t do it.” The doctor sighed again and pocketed his handkerchief once more.

“We’ll see. For now, please try your best to cease scratching. It’s for your own good,” he said. “Goodnight, (Y/N).” Dr. Jimenez left the room without another word. You heard the lock on the door click into place.

“It’s night already?” you asked. The lack of windows and clocks in the cell made it extremely difficult to keep track of time. You looked at Laura, who brushed a lock of ebony hair behind her ear with a slight nod. “I guess we should get some sleep then.”

You carefully shifted around until you could lie down on your side, uncomfortable as usual. Laura rested her head down beside you, lying on her back and gently folding her hands over her stomach.

“Goodnight, Laura,” you whispered to her. She nodded at you and smiled softly before looking up at the ceiling. You wondered if she actually ever slept while you were sleeping. She always seemed to be awake when you looked at her. Perhaps she was making sure nothing happened to you in your sleep.

Comforted by this thought, you let your heavy eyelids drop and soon drifted off into a dreamless slumber.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ruben will be in the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

Time passes strangely in windowless rooms, so you weren’t sure how many days it had been since your wound scabbed over again and the bandage was removed. Still, you were confident it was at least one full day and were proud of yourself for not having opened it again yet.

Laura spun around near the door of the room and looked at you expectantly.

“Ballerina?” you guessed. She shook her head, spun around again, and wobbled slightly. You tilted your head, staring at her with a thoughtful expression.

“A clumsy ballerina?” Laura giggled silently, shaking her head. She paused to think for a moment, then spun around once more, wobbling and then flopping over onto the ground.

“A top!” you exclaimed. She sat up and nodded enthusiastically, clapping her hands a few times. As she stood up again, the door creaked open and Dr. Jimenez stepped in onto the white padded floor, interrupting your game of charades.

“(Y/N), I’ve made the decision to go through with the new treatment,” he said, adjusting his necktie as he spoke. You gave him a look of disbelief, then turned your head to look at Laura, who had stepped out of the way as the doctor entered the room.

“Laura, didn’t I tell him I wouldn’t do it?” you asked. Laura nodded, glancing at Dr. Jimenez with a silent sigh of annoyance. The doctor pressed his hand against his forehead for a moment, before clearing his throat and giving you a pained sort of smile.

“I’m just doing what’s best for you, (Y/N),” he said. “Surely Laura wants what’s best for you too.”

You looked at Laura, who crossed her arms at the doctor in frustration. You both knew he was right in a way, but you didn’t trust his treatments nor his judgement. The long silence was broken by Dr. Jimenez clearing his throat once more.

“I’m afraid you’ll be going through with this whether you like it or not,” the doctor said, walking over to you. Laura tried to stand in the way, but he simply passed right through her. He pulled a syringe from his pocket and your heart immediately jumped into your throat.

“Wait!” you said quickly, leaning away from the syringe. “I’ll go willingly—I just don’t want to be sedated.” The doctor shook his head slightly, grabbing one of your shoulders firmly and carefully jabbing the needle into the side of your neck. You couldn’t feel it, but the thought of it being there made your stomach churn.

“Regardless,” Dr. Jimenez said, his voice starting to ring in your ears, “sedation is… necessary for this procedure.” You glared at him, leaning your head against the wall as he drew the syringe away. Whatever drug he used on you was strong and your vision was beginning to blur. You tore your eyes away from him to seek out Laura.

“Laura,” you mumbled, spotting the red of her dress. “Don’t let them…do anything…weird…” You could vaguely see her nod her head before you let your eyes close and you fell into a deep sleep.

\-----

_“Careful, (Y/N)!” Laura shouted up to you. You gave her a reassuring smile before grabbing onto the next branch, holding it tightly with your fingers before hopping up and quickly hugging your legs around it. With a careful twist, you turned yourself over onto the top of the branch and sat up. Laura clapped beneath you and you laughed, raising your arms above your head towards the sky._

_“How are you going to get back down?” Ruben called, sounding a little nervous._

_“I’m gonna jump down!”_

_“No!” the Victoriano siblings shouted simultaneously. You laughed so hard in response that you nearly fell off the branch you were precariously perched upon._

_“I’m just kidding! I’ll be careful! Watch!” you said, starting to make the descent down through the branches. Glancing down at the two, you could see that Ruben was holding his breath, his pale face turning a shade of pink and his eyes wide watching you. Amused at the sight, you lost your concentration and stepped onto a branch too thin to support your weight. With a snap, it broke beneath you and the siblings screamed as you fell a few feet before managing to grab onto another branch. Feet dangling in the air, you started to panic. You were still far enough from the ground that letting go would almost certainly result in a fractured bone._

_“Hold on—I’m coming up!” you heard Ruben shout. You weren’t planning on letting go any time soon, but your arms were already exhausted from climbing the tree and your muscles were screaming at you to let go._

_“Hurry!” you cried, feeling your fingers start to slip. Suddenly, your hands parted from the branch and you started to fall. Before you could even open your mouth to scream, you felt Ruben’s arm wrap around your waist, catching you from a branch below._

_“Got you!” he exclaimed, gripping the bark with one arm and holding you with the other. He was panting and sweating, both from climbing so quickly and from the fear of not making it in time. You let out a shaky exhale, pulling yourself up beside him so that he could hold onto the branch with both hands. Laura cheered beneath the two of you, tearing up in relief._

_You turned your head to look at Ruben, heart still pounding from adrenaline, but now smiling in appreciation. He smiled back at you proudly._

_“Thank you for saving me,” you said softly._

_“Don’t mention it,” he said. “I’m just glad you’re okay.” He leaned over and gave you a quick kiss on the lips before starting to make his way down the tree, not giving you time to react. Butterflies erupted in your stomach and you felt your cheeks flush pink. At that moment, you realized that Ruben had feelings for you, and you had feelings for him too._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ruben and Reader sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!


End file.
